Easy to Say leads cast for featured allowance sprint
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HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – Saturday’s 11-race card at Gulfstream Park features a $43,000 optional-claiming/allowance race at six furlongs that lured a field of seven older horses led by Easy to Say, who is expected to be favored over a well-matched group that includes Mach My Day, The Son Wind, and Call to Honor.
Easy to Say, stakes-placed last summer at Saratoga when finishing third behind Stallwalkin’ Dude in the Tale of the Cat, was idle for nearly four months before launching his 2017 campaign by finishing third against a strong group of higher-level optional-claiming and allowance horses March 16; he earned a 94 Beyer Speed Figure for the performance. The homebred son of Eskendereya is trained by Jason Servis for the New Farm.
Mach My Day has proven consistent for trainer Allen Iwinski and exits a popular 2 1/2-length victory under a $25,000 price tag in late February. He’ll attempt to improve on his fourth-place finish behind The Son Wind earlier this winter.
The Son Wind has proven popular at the claim box, having been haltered for $25,000 out of each of his last two starts. He’ll compete Saturday for Rancho Alegre and trainer Ruben Gracida.
Picadilly Roadster brings a modest two-race win streak into the race while also in new hands, having been claimed for $30,000 by trainer Steve Towne out of a win here March 17.
The headliner will be preceded by a one-mile maiden special weight race for 3-year-olds that includes a pair of unraced, well-bred colts from the Todd Pletcher barn: Al Khor and Hy Brasil. Al Khor is the more fashionably bred of the pair, being a son of Bodemeister out of the Grade 1-winning mare Awesome Humor who brought $500,000 at the August 2015 Fasig-Tipton yearling sale. Both horses have been working steadily at Palm Beach Downs.
The seven-horse field also includes the debuting Inevitable, by Giant’s Causeway, for trainer James Bond and the experienced pair of Outside Lookin In and Mr Atila.
◗ Jockey Tyler Gaffalione and trainer Ralph Nicks were the stars on Wednesday’s card, combining for a pair of winners: even-money favorite Aquemini in the sixth race and Star Contender (2-1) in the finale. Star Contender completed a hat trick for Gaffalione that also included Azar’s win for Pletcher in the featured third race.
Gaffalione and Nicks came right back to dominate Thursday’s opening race with the 1-5 Eila, who cruised to a win against just four rivals in an optional-claiming/allowance dash on the grass.